


Meet me Under the Statues' Shadow

by Sorbet_Shark



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, And remy is just there, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders & Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders Are Siblings, Deceit is a good friend, Misgendering, Other, Trans Morality | Patton Sanders, and Virgil is smack in between them because their mom married their dad, but like a decade apart, dating roman and chilling, logan and patton are childhood friends, patton is a good friend, soulmates can't go to a certain location until they meet, trans fem patton
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-17
Updated: 2020-12-11
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:55:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22766596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sorbet_Shark/pseuds/Sorbet_Shark
Summary: Logan Berry knows that one day, he will meet his soulmate under the Soldiers and Sailors monument, a part of the park that he could never go to.Virgil Storm, dragged along on a vacation that they never wanted to be a part of, doesn't know what they're in for.Prompt by @sanderssides_prompts on Instagram, check the page out, lots of cool stuff!
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders/Sleep | Remy Sanders
Comments: 17
Kudos: 80





	1. The Trip

Let the records state that Virgil Storm loves their mother very much. She always does her best to take care of them, raising them on her own when her boyfriend walked out, juggled careers with bake sales and after-school art classes, hell, she even found a way to fit in hormones and gender therapy after they came out on their thirteenth birthday! And Virgil loves and appreciates their mom for this and more. But that does not change how pissed they were that she went and married _him_. _He_ just made everything harder, _he_ never got their pronouns right, _he_ brought the gremlin child and the holier-than-thou college student into their life. Worst of all, _he_ was so goddamn nice about it. "He- I'm so sorry, Virgil, _they_ were heading out," "Do you want to have some father s- kid bonding?" "I'm sorry that things are tough between us,". It all made Virgil want to scream. They just wanted to go back to when it was just them and Mom against the world, but then they saw how happy she was looking at _him_ and they instantly regretted everything. They want her to be happy, they just don't want _him_ to be the one doing it. _He_ didn't understand her, _he_ didn't understand them. Virgil doesn't know who they're more mad at, their mom for falling in love with this man, or themself for not sabotaging a date early enough to get him to scram. They didn't even think it would get to this point, but now they share a room with Remus, the disaster child, right across the hall from Roman, the college slacker who seemed to overshadow everyone in this whole family. Plus, he perpetually has his boyfriend over. Blech. Gross. They were able to avoid the mess for the most part, they practically lived in the basement. The only thing that kept the basement from being Virgil's room was the fact that the only TV that could support the family XBox was downstairs. So, whenever Remus wanted to play XBox, Virgil got their room to themself. Whenever Roman used the XBox, they went out on a walk. However, there were certain times throughout the day that Virgil could not escape the dreaded family bonding time. Dinner was one of these times.

"So, Virg, how was your final? Are you excited that summer is less than a week away?" _He_ asks through a mouthful of mashed sweet potatoes. Virgil pokes at the unsatisfying slice of meatloaf on their plate, Mom had to work later, so _he_ prepared dinner. Even Mom can't hide how bad it is.

"Dunno," They mumble, "Exams are fine."

"That's great! Remus, how're your end-of-the-year party going?" His voice raises a bit as he unintentionally babies the child. While Remus is only ten, five years younger than Virgil, Virgil wonders if Remus feels insulted. Probably not.

"Great!" Remus babbled. Virgil noticed that, as he flung peas everywhere, he had drawn another silly mustache on his face. "Today we got to cash in on all our Good Behavior Points. I could only afford ten tootsie rolls,three big lollipops, or-"

Virgil felt it best to tune this out. Also at the table was Roman, currently playing footsie with Remy across the table. And finally, the only person IRL who they love, their mom. She looks tired, Virgil notes as they internally promise to volunteer to do the dishes that night. She looks at them and smiles, they smile back. "So, what do you think?" She asks gently.

"Think about what?" Virgil blurts, confused.

"See, he wasn't even paying attention!" Roman guffaws. "They! Sorry, Emo Nightmare, sorry." Virgil doesn't justify this with a response, allowing their mom to scold Roman.

"So, next week, since you and Remus are finally off school," _He_ starts carefully, navigating the minefield between _him_ and Virgil. "We were thinking about taking a little trip! We would be heading to Boston, so we'd be able to see art museums, for Roman, war history for Remus, and- Well there's a ton to do in Boston, I'm sure we can find _something_ that you'll love-"

"Pride, Virg." Their mom cuts in. "Boston pride is going to happen while we're there. As well as that, there's a lot of LGBT and Jewish history in Boston and the surrounding areas. Isn't that great?"

Virgil's first instinct is to be angry. Throw a tantrum. Refuse to go. They didn't want to go across the country with this family and their mom, but they had promised to try to be nicer. Mom deserves an easier time. So they pushed down the bile rising in their throat and threw on a smile. "Yeah, sounds... great..!"

The smile on Mom's face was enough to show them that it was worth it. They were almost willing to ignore the twenty bucks slid across the table from Roman to Remy. "You weren't making bets on me making a scene, were you?"

Roman has the common sense to look ashamed before he received another lecture on welcoming new family.

***

"So these points?" Patton pointed at the map. Her hair was in the awkward stage where it was too short to tie back but too long to stay out of the way. She pushed it back.

Logan liked to notice these things. He remembered when Patton thought she was a he, and Logan wanted to remember Patton's milestones. First ponytail in a scrunchy, first dress, first hormones, that kind of thing. Logan likes to document important stuff. He keeps it all in his notebook, which never leaves his side. Well, there are all the full notebooks, but those were securely hidden under his bed. He had eventually combed through all of them, realizing that most were filled with nonsense. He didn't remember why he wrote most of what he wrote, so he rewrote what he did deem important into a different notebook. He still kept all of it. This notebook was mostly full of soulmate notes. On his soulmate experiment, as well as Patton's border-less life. This did not mean that, someday, she wouldn't meet a soulmate, just that she couldn't know where yet. Logan was lucky. He lived so close to his border. The epicenter was the Soldiers and Sailors monument, and he physically couldn't enter the circle around it. The radius was 260 ft, and the circumference was 1,633.63 ft. He had done the math, and just to double check, walked the circumference while Patton helpfully did the radius measurement. 

"They are points in the circle that I will check first when I can get in. There are several routes, all with the same points, depending on where I start. I want to get to the statue as soon as possible. It feels... Important... Maybe if I can read the plaque, it would help explain why here?" Logan scratches his head, concentrating on all the locations.

"First of all, you'll meet your soulmate. I don't know if this is just another algorithm, it's fate!" Patton rests a hand on Logan's shoulder, which is almost like a magnet that puklls the stress off of the poor nerd. She giggles, pointing to the map. "Also, path three leads straight through the Frog Pond."

"I will... reroute that one." Logan sputters. "Wouldn't want to ruin everything by being an awkward mess."

"Logan, this is your _soulmate_!" Patton consoles, rubbing his back comfortingly. "look at me. Whoever the person is, they will love you, awkwardness is a part of the package."

"Thanks Pat, I guess I'm done here for the day, I just need to-" He tentatively puts a hand out, reaching towards the unobtainable obelisk of the monument. As expected, the invisible wall stops his hand. "Want to get that tube of lipstick before my shift?"

"More than anything!"


	2. The Week Before

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil's mom and Virgil have a moment, while Patton is an actress and Logan does a Big Think TM.
> 
> TW: Food, mild transphobia

Virgil leans against Mom’s side. They know that she’s trying to break news lightly, this is what she always does. She takes up a plate of something freshly baked, this time a still-warm slice of coffee cake, as well as a cup of grape juice, and listens to Virgil talk about whatever they’re interested in at the moment. Not that she doesn’t usually, she just prompts them to talk. This time, they gush about the newest cookie from their favorite mobile game Cookie Run, where they choose a character and jump and slide through a cartoonish landscape. They happen to be very gay for Ananas Dragon, a fierce warrior dragon who rules over their pineapple island like a God. At this point, Mom already understands what they mean by gay, they don’t need to explain that technically they’re bi and they just say Gay when they see a hot person. Mom is good like that.  _ He _ wasn’t. Virgil learned that early on, they were testing the waters when they had just met  _ him _ and had cracked a gay joke. Of course, Mom was cool with it. She was just that kind of person. But  _ he _ just froze up, made uncomfortable eye contact with Mom, and looked away. But that wasn’t necessary to think about right now. 

“So, what is it?” Virgil says after finishing the last bite of coffee cake.

Mom looked at them quickly. “Wow, you’re sharp as a tack, can’t get anything by you!” She laughs and grabs Virgil’s plate, putting it to the side. Virgil sips the juice. “You know how we have our flight next week. I just wanted to run some stuff with the hotel and stuff.” Virgil turns their head up to look at Mom, suspicion on their face.

“First, Remy’s coming with. He offered to pay for his own ticket, and a room separate from us at the hotel. Matt refused to let him pay for the ticket, you know, we were both college kids once, we get it, but he’s paying for a room with Roman so that they can have privacy. We have one bedroom, and a pullout couch, but we can get a mattress up so that you and Ree don’t need to share a bed. But you will share a room, you’ll be in the living room / dining room combo.”

Virgil starts to open his mouth, making a disgruntled noise, but Mom cuts in. “If you are completely opposed to sharing a room, then I can take Ree’s bed, Matt really doesn’t mind and would want us to have the better bed but, you know, his back.”

Virgil scowls. “I… But… Remus… I don’t want to make you… Grrrrr…” They pause, take a deep breath, and sigh before starting to speak glumly. “I’ll sleep in the same room as Remus.”

“Thank you darling,” She smiles sympathetically, ruffling a hand through their hair. “Your hair is getting kinda long, want to cut it? Dye it? Also, you know that Remus adores you, right?”

“Pfft… What? Remus is a little gremlin child who, I dunno, eats crayons! And picks up centipedes!” Virgil scoffs, recoiling.

Mom laughs again. “That’s rich, coming from Mx. Spider Whisperer. You really traumatized those kids.”

“That was in fifth grade!” Standing up, their face flushes. “Also I think I want to dye my hair purple again!”

“That sounds perfect, honey,” Mom smiles fondly. “Please give Remus a chance. He reminds me of you when you were a little kiddo. You both march to the beat of your own drum. You’re both unique, you both have this wry sense of humor, you’re both creative.”

“Fuckin’ fine,” Virgil pouts. “At least he’s better than Roman. And he never messes up my pronouns.”

Mom pauses, choosing her next words carefully. “I’m not going to try to defend Matt or Roman, I hope that they get better soon with the pronouns but they have no excuse. It’s been two? No, three years now.” G_d, Virgil loves their mom.

“Ok, now I bet you want to start packing?” Virgil prompts.

“Yup! Now let’s get started!”

***

Logan doesn’t know how, but he’s actually pretty good at makeup. This is something that Patton is grateful for, as whenever she does makeup, it is reminiscent of a little kid drawing with crayons. But Logan’s work is all crisp cat eyes, highlighter that pops, and well-defined lip-lined lips. The entire theater department is also grateful for that. Which is how Logan ends up sitting on a chair applying intricate makeup onto Patton’s face. Patton is a genderswapped Puck from  _ Midsummer Night’s Dream _ . Their highschool wanted to be inclusive enough to allow her character to be a girl, but not enough to let her be Helena. Honestly, in Logan’s opinion, the current Helena, Gracie H., was a bad actress. He wondered if she’d even know her lines by opening night. But Patton seemed happy enough, and she got to dress up as a beautiful fairy and be mischievous at the same time. Plus, Puck steals the whole show.

“So, how do I look?” Patton flutters her eyelashes. The green eyeshadow crawls up her face turning into delicate leaves and vines. Facepaint flowers and 3D plastic flowers dot her temples and forehead. Topping that off, white contacts make her look ethereal.

“You look gorgeous, dear.” Logan exhales, taking in the finished product. “Now I only have to replicate this five more times.” He bops her on the nose with a clean brush and she giggles. Patton is incredibly ticklish, Logan learned this many years ago.

“Ok, are you sure you want to watch our costume run? You don’t have to if you don’t want to.” 

“Of course I do! I’ll be in the audience and we can walk home together.” Logan smiles, hoping he looks reassuring. “As I have been told, fracture a femur.” Patton openly laughs and is about to respond before she is called over to get ready. Logan takes a seat in the audience. Now that school was ending, he had to come up with a new schedule, and fast. After one week of finals Logan would be faced with weeks and weeks of unscheduled time, which made Logan shudder at the thought. So, instead of thinking about it, he turns his attention to the actors, which doesn’t last for long, of course. Logan’s thoughts drift away again.

One of the coolest things in  _ Midsummer Night’s Dream _ is, in Logan’s opinion, how it is never stated who’s soulmate is who’s. Sure, there are many interpretations (see: people’s ships), but Logan personally thinks that it’s implied that Hermia, Helena, Demetrius, and Lysander reached the same area at the same time, meaning that they can never truly know. Shakespeare was ahead of his time, Logan muses, he represents relationships and attractions outside of soulmates, something that was only achieved relatively recently in modern society after a lot of protesting. Even now, Soulmated folks act really stuck up about their Soul Status, and most romance stories center on soulmates. Logan knows how privileged he is to possibly meet his soulmate, it is not often that the people meant for eachother have the opportunity to figure out where they will meet their soulmate. Some people go on vacations just to feel around different places for that invisible barrier. And here Logan’s was, right in his metaphorical backyard. Though it sucked that he could never go to a large portion of the Commons, he still had a huge opportunity-

“So, what’d you think?” Patton’s face is right next to his. Wow, he really was lost in thought.

“It was good, you did good…” Logan trails off before blurting out the first thing on his mind. “I’m sorry!”

“For… what..?” Patton laughs awkwardly. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Logan sighs, not meeting her eyes. “I always make you come with me with the soulmate stuff… I know you haven’t ever found your Soul Space and all but you’re helping me without knowing if I can return the favor!”

Patton’s face drops along with Logan’s stomach. “That is… not true at all.” Patton gestures if she can put her hand on his shoulder, and Logan nods. “First off, you aren’t forcing me to do anything. You have an opportunity that many don’t get, and while you can live happily without your soulmate, I want you to be able to live happily  _ with _ them.” Patton takes a deep breath. Logan watches as she exhales slowly, as if trying to delay the inevitable. “I lied. About my Soul Space.” Logan looks up, shocked. He had never known, he searched through his memory of any time he hadn’t picked up on any clues that Patton might have dropped. “You know how my dad worked at the Highschool when I was really little? Like an itty bitty baby? (Ok, more like a toddler but it doesn’t matter.) Anyway, my dad tried to take me in, y’know, show off his adorable kid to the faculty, but… I couldn’t get past the doorway. I was so upset at first, then I was thrilled, or at least that’s what Dad said, and I kept going back, only to be met by the barrier. Then, the first day of Highschool. My dads wanted to just send me to a private school, but they couldn’t afford that! Papa had just lost his job and hadn’t gotten his novel out yet, money was tight. So I begged for one last try, if it didn’t work, it didn’t work. And… I went in. But there were so many people, such a huge crowd, and I got swept away before I could find them.” Logan opens his mouth, about to make a comment, but Patton stops him, raising a hand. “I already asked as many of the people that I recognized, but all of them either hadn’t encountered their Soul Spots or had already found theirs. One of those first ones must be The One, but I don’t know who. But I want you to find your One.”

Logan looks Patton in the eyes for the first time and realizes that she’s tearing up. He slides her a tissue from his bag (one must always be prepared), and pats her hand that’s resting on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, I had no idea.”

“You couldn’t have known. I didn’t tell you.” She smiles wetly. “Come on, you gotta get me out of this makeup before I smudge it too badly.”

“Do you still want to dye your hair tonight? Ren got the hair dye and you can sleep over.” Logan grins hopefully, fishing for a makeup wipe in his bag while guiding Patton to the seat next to him.

“I’d love to.” She grins, putting her face forward, fluttering her eyes closed. Logan wipes off most of the makeup with a few wipes before the two get up and head home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long, but I enjoyed writing this.
> 
> I KNOW who Pat's soulmate is and I don't know if/when y'all will
> 
> Also, in the near future, I have plans... wholesome fluff plans... with a twist
> 
> also patton angst yay! and if the lore drop is awkward let me know btw


	3. Bridging the Gap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil spends some bonding time with their step-brother Remus while Patton and Logan run into an acquaintance
> 
> TW: Food (pop-tarts), mentions of the Salem Witch trial, mentions of gore (not detailed), mentions of transphobia and toxic masculinity (mentioned briefly by Logan)

“Virgy?” Virgil tugs off their headphones, propping themself up with their elbows and looking up from their phone. They’re so tired, they only arrived at the hotel a few hours ago, and it had been a long flight. Virgil was pretty sure that he was already asleep. Remus obviously wasn’t, as he stood by the foot of the pullout-couch-which-is-currently-a-bed. He holds his marker-covered hands clasped together and pouts. Virgil frowns at him, he seems to have scribbled a mustache above his upper lip. “Can you take me to get snacks please?”

Virgil sighs. “What would your dad say? I’m not getting in trouble for giving you sugar again.”

Remus smiled mischievously before Mom cut in from the other room. “I give you permission to get snacks.” Scowling, Virgil gets up from the bed and reaches for their wallet. They still had some money left over from commissions, though most of it went to a new drawing tablet. The old one was a treasured object that Virgil had gotten when they started middle school, but through a mishap that could be blamed on nobody (*cough cough* He broke it by accident), it was toast. Virgil supposes that this gave him the excuse to splurge on a top-of-the-line tablet, but that was almost all the money they had made.

“So, squirt,” Virgil pulls their signature lop-sided smile. “What do you want?”

Almost without thinking, Remus jumps up and down excitedly. “Pop taaarts!”

“Woah, ok,” Virgil puts a hand on Remus’ shoulder. “Pop tarts it is! Ready to go?”

“Wait wait wait! I gotta pay you back!” Remus runs to the hotel desk, and before Virgil can protest, a drawing is thrust into his hands. “You see, that’s you, that’s me, and that’s Roman!”

“What’s that?” Virgil doesn’t quite know how to react to a crayon and marker drawing, so he points to the grey blob.

Remus grins. “It’s Giles Corey! We’re so close to Salem so I drew him bein’ crushed by rocks!”

How the hell are you supposed to react to that? Virgil inwardly curses Roman and Remus’ shared appreciation of history, recognizing the reference to the Salem Witch Trials. While Roman was fascinated with feudal Europe at Remus’ age, or so they were told, Remus likes a variety of gruesome subjects. For a while, Remus has been fascinated by military history and the Salem Witch Trials. “Cool.” Virgil nods.

“Y’know what his last words were?” Virgil shakes his head slowly. “More weight!” He bursts into laughter.

“Well…” Virgil says slowly, confused. “I’m gonna put this here, let’s go?”

As Remus skips down the hallway and Virgil follows, their mom’s words echo through their head. Maybe they were like Remus as a child. The drawing with Giles Corey reminded Virgil of a similar incident. It was around Passover, so they drew an Israelite marking their door to avoid the final plague, death of the first born. The main issue was that the doorway was marked with lamb’s blood, so they drew a butchered lamb in the background. They cringe thinking back to it, they had really concerned a teacher and a few councilors. But Mom wasn’t angry or upset. She sat them down and said that while Virgil can and should draw whatever they wanted, they needed to be careful about their audience. Despite this, Virgil was more cautious drawing anything that could be labeled disturbing. Except for commissions and their private Tumblr that only Mom knew of. Virgil let go of every inhibition and drew whatever was on their mind.

Virgil realizes that, for the first time ever, they feel a connection to Remus. As they make this revelation, the two approach a vending machine.

“Sooo…” Remus says in a sing-song voice. “We can get them here or go to the shop, Dad told me there’s a store here when I asked for Pop Tarts at the airport.”

“How about we see what flavors there are here?” Virgil muses. “If there isn’t much here then we can find the shop.”

“Ewww! They only have danish pop tarts in here! We need to check the store!”

Virgil chuckles. “What, you don’t like danishes?” Remus shakes his head rapidly, sending his hair flying. “Ok, let’s go.”

Thankfully, the store had a larger variety of Pop Tarts, so instead of getting a box of one flavor,the two get one of each.

“You think we can find the pool after we eat some of these?” Remus looks up at Virgil.

“Yeah, sure,” Virgil shrugs.

Remus does a fist bump. “Yeah! You’re the best sib ever!”

The two return to their room and start to put Pop-Tarts in the toaster. “Hey Rem, you know what Pride is?”

“Yeah! I think!” Remus grins. “It’s where Roman and Remy like to go to kiss ‘n stuff. You do too, right? Except not to kiss people, you go to say ‘look here I’m not a boy or girl’?”

Virgil chuckles a bit. “Basically. It’s a protest for equality for all sexualities, gender identities, and Soul Statuses. It’s also a time to celebrate the progress that we’ve made so far!”

“That’s so cool! Didn’t Mom say there’s one here soon? I wanna go!” Remus jumps up and down as the Pop-Tart pops out of the toaster. “It’s time! Pop-Tart time!”

“From what I’ve heard, next week, Mom, Remy, Roman, and me were planning on going to Pride. Your dad was talking about bringing you to the Children’s Museum, I don’t think he thought you were interested.”

Remus slams his plate down on the table. “That’s silly! Of course I want to!” Remus stops a second. “Why don’t you call Dad ‘Dad’? You always say he’s my dad.”

“I…” Shit. How the hell do you answer that? “I don’t know. You know how Roman doesn’t call Mom ‘Mom’? I guess it’s because I’m a bit older. I don’t really need a dad, I’ve gotten this far without one.” Virgil sees how upset Remus looks. “Hey hey! It’s not a bad thing! What’s wrong?”

“But you’re my sibling, so’s Roman. Dad said we’d all be a big happy family.” Remus pouts.

Virgil’s eyebrows furrow. “Well, that’s tough. I mean, it’s more complicated than that. I love Mom, and you’re a really cool little brother. Are you happy with me and Mom as your family?” Remus nods. “I don’t know where I’m going with this, I don’t know if it's as simple as that. I’ll work on getting closer to your dad, ok? Want to get changed to go swimming?”

Remus nods. “I’ll be right out.” As Remus rummages in his bag, Virgil frowns. Now two people want them to get closer to him. That sounds like a dreadful prospect. But it can’t be that hard to pretend. As Remus runs to the bathroom, Mom steps out of the bedroom.

“I heard what you said. Matt’s out cold.” She grabs one of the many pop-tarts on the counter. “I’m proud of you. You’ve grown to be very mature. Very… contemplative.”

“Yeah.” Virgil grins lopsided, before turning to grab their swimsuit. “And, you were right.”

Mom smiles before talking lightheartedly. “I know that I’m right, now what specifically am I right about?”

Virgil snorts. “Yeah, yeah. You were right about me and Remus. He’s cool, I guess. I’m glad I gave him a chance?”

Mom gives them a hug and ruffles their hair. “I’ll leave you to get ready. Also, I’ll talk to Matt about Remus joining us at Pride. Love you, honey.” 

“Love you too, Mom.” Mom gets up.

“Have a great time at the pool, be careful,” Mom closes the bedroom door behind her, leaving Virgil to scramble into their swim suit, grabbing the keys and a towel, and slipping on sandals. Remus slips on flip flops, chatting animatedly as they leave the room. Virgil grins. Maybe this trip won’t be too bad. 

***

Logan was always nervous when he went with Patton to Claires. It’s not like he expected anything bad to happen, but one could never be too careful. With Patton transitioning and him being a man who occasionally dabbles in skirts, dresses, and makeup, he alway keeps an eye on those around him. Which is why he jumps when Patton taps his shoulder.

“Sooo…” She grins, brandishing a scrunchie and several cute and colorful hair clips. “These with the new dress?” While Patton isn’t great at makeup, she is an excellent seamstress. She sews a lot of her own clothes with fabric she gets at a discount.

“The one with the tulle skirt?” Logan pauses, bringing the picture of the dress to his mind. “I believe that the colors match well and it would look nice. Though you do have a scrunchie very similar to this one at home.”

Patton scrunches her nose. “You’re right! Where would I be without you, Lo Lo? I guess I chose the color because it matches…” She gestures to her pink hair, pulled into a small bun that sits atop her head like a cotton candy cloud. “Oh, wait! Look at these!” Patton almost drops everything, scrambling to pick something up from the sunglasses rack. Taking a closer look, it’s a pair of pink tinted sunglasses with a heart shaped wire frame.

“They are very much your style.” Logan marvels as Patton slides them onto her face. “You got everything you want?”

She nods, her hair bouncing slightly, and her gaze lingers on the friendship bracelets and necklaces. “Just out of curiosity, do you still have the BE FRI necklace? I just found the ST ENDS one.”

It takes Logan a moment, but he remembers, pulling the necklace up over his shirt collar, knowing it would fit perfectly with Patton’s to spell BEST FRIENDS. Whenever he wore it, it usually ended up covered. It was a token of his and Patton’s friendship, and though it's corny, he likes to keep it close to his heart. “Yes, I do. It’s a different cord but the same necklace.” The two walk over to the register. “I’ve got this, you paid for lunch.”

The woman behind the register grins at Logan, scanning the items. “Getting a gift for your girlfriend?”

“No, no, we’re not… I’m not…” Logan sputters, blushing slightly. “I am getting her a gift in a platonic way.”

“Ah, of course.” She winks at Patton, who grins from ear to ear, playing with a loose seam on her shirt. “The total will be $7.75” 

As the two head out, Patton leans in to whisper loudly. “Did you see that she called me a girl!” Ever since she started transitioning, more people gender her correctly, but, she admitted to Logan once while sleeping over, she still got the same rush of joy she did the first time it happened.

Logan grins at her, “I am very happy that she did. I apologize for being awkward, I did not expect that question.”

“Don’t worry about it! I get it.” She pauses, thinking. “If we cut through Faneuil Hall we can stop by your Soul Spot before we head home!”

As they walk, they talk about Patton’s dresses. “So, I was doing some research, and I think the aesthetic I want to go for is Decora Kei!” Patton chirps. “All I need to do is to put my dresses and my accessories together and boom! Decora!”

“While I am unfamiliar with the style, I think that that sounds incredibly fun, and definitely your style,” Logan nods, watching Patton skip ahead of him. “Does that style have lots of hair clips, ribbons, and barrettes above one’s face?”

“Yup! You got it, Lo Lo!” She looks back. “Hey look! It’s Dee!”

Sitting on a bench that the two had just passed sits Deidre, Patton’s friend from the Debate Club and part of the group that Patton and Logan sit with at lunch. “Want to go say hi?” Logan asks and Patton nods quickly. As the two walk closer, Logan notes the pronoun pin on Deidre’s coat. Ah, it’s a per/pers day. That meant that per was probably going by Janus. But -Logan concludes- better to ask than to assume. As Logan looks over to Patton, he sees that she came to the same conclusion.

“Hey!” Patton waves excitedly as they get close. “It’s good to see you! What name are you using now?”

Per looks up from pers phone, surprised, before smiling. “Hey Pat! Lo! Today’s a Janus day, thanks for asking. What’s up?”

“Just got back from Claire’s, you know, treating myself,” The two share a laugh. Logan knows it’s an inside joke, it feels weird to not be in on the joke when it comes to Patton. “But yeah, we’re headed to the Commons, want to come?”

“Sure, I was waiting to hang out with Andy but I think he bailed on me, you know how he is,” Janus pushes perself up. Logan does get this. Andy is a notorious flake who also happened to be Logan and Patton’s lab partner in Honors Chem. Getting projects done was rough.

“Ok, let’s continue.” Logan nods, starting to walk. As they walk, Janus and Patton chat. It’s not that Logan doesn’t like Janus, in fact they have had a few fascinating conversations. Logan struggles with speaking in a group, so he usually doesn’t until he feels he actually has a fun fact or comment to add to the conversation. Once, when Janus and him both had substitutes at the same block and both classes were sent to the library, Janus joked that per thought that Logan didn’t like pers at first. Logan remembers being surprised, did he really give off those vibes? Logan doesn’t realize that they’ve stopped until he walks directly into the barrier of his Soul Spot. The momentum, however, doesn’t stop and Logan’s glasses fly off his nose. After taking a step back, he reaches forward without thinking, hitting his wrist against the barrier.

“Shit!” He draws back his hand. “Pat, can you get that?”

Janus’ mouth makes an ‘o’. “You found your Soul Spot? Cool.”

“Yeah, I’ve been keeping an eye on it.” Logan shakes his hand before looking over. “Have you found yours?”

“That’s awfully forward of you on such a sensitive subject.” Logan moves to apologize, but Janus laughs. “I’m pulling your leg, I haven’t been looking. But it’s cool you’ve found yours.”

“Yeah, I didn’t think before I said that,” Logan laughs awkwardly. “What have you been up to? I heard you were planning on going to Pride next week, want to meet up with me and Patton at some point?”

“Here you go!” Patton says, giving Logan his glasses. “Also, yeah, we’re planning on hanging around by the booths at Copley Square since, y’know, it’s a bit tricky for Logan here.”

Janus thinks, checking pers phone. “Yeah, that should work. I was planning on hanging with Joan and Talyn while Thomas sets up his church’s group. They’re marching, which is cool. I’m sure we could meet up, or I could find you on my own. When are you planning on going and leaving?”

The three continue planning, hanging out until the sun starts to set and they all need to go home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Three chapters in and they haven't met. But... that will change either next chapter or the chapter after.
> 
> Janus/Deidre is genderfluid, primarily using she/her when using Deidre and per/pers or fae/faer when using Janus
> 
> I think this is the longest chapter yet
> 
> also, cue to me frantically googling the geography of Boston to make sure what i'm saying makes any sense


	4. Breaking the Border

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil meets their good friend Deidre.
> 
> Logan realizes he missed his soulmate by a moment.

_ U said ur near Boston, right? _ Virgil types out, hitting send. Putting down their phone, they go back to dotting glitter on Remus’ face and arms. “And you’re sure you want a glitter mustache?”

“Yes! I do!” Remus says cheerily, swinging his legs as he tries not to squirm in his seat. “Virgil, can I tell you something?”

“Sure thing, what’s up little bud?” Virgil checks their phone for references, while also checking their Discord messages.  _ Yeah… y tho? _ Their best friend who goes by many names had responded. Their favorite of faer many names and nicknames is faer username, Jantendo 64. Virgil likes calling faem Jantendo unless it’s a Deidre day, which does happen. On those days, Virgil calls faem Three-Dee-S. But for now, Jantendo it is.  _ And u said ur friends were planning smthn fr Pride today? _

“Well,” Remus seems nervous and shy, which makes Virgil concerned. “I like a boy in my grade. He’s really cute and wears heart glasses and sweaters and likes Stitch as much as I do!”

Virgil ruffles Remus’ hair. “That’s really sweet! Now, do you want something with hair texture, or just glitter and makeup?”

“Hair texture. And make the glitter pink, green, and purple, please. It’s like us! Roman, me, and you.”

“I didn’t know you associated us with colors, but yeah, that should work. What’s his name?” Virgil looks for the faux fur, spirit gum, and glitter, checking their phone as they do.  _ Yes..? _

“Emile!”

“That’s a lovely name!”  _ I’m in Boston, going to Pride today ;P _ “Now, Ree, hold still a sec.” Virgil smears spirit gum on Remus’ upper lip, waiting a few moments before tapping the wet patches, noting that they’re tacky. They carefully place two pieces of hair on the patches, holding them in place. Their phone dings. “Hey, bud, can you read that for me?”

Remus maneuvers the phone so that he can see it, reading aloud, and enunciating each word carefully. “I’m. In. Boston. Too. Want. To. Meet. A. Cross. From. State. House. At. Three? Ooh! Are you seeing a friend today?”

“Looks like a possibility,” Virgil adds glitter and gel, beginning to shape the mustache. “Want to check that out in the mirror?” Remus nods and hops off the seat. Virgil snickers as he hears Mom’s appreciation of Virgil’s work and _His_ hidden indignation. Virgil puts that out of mind, choosing to focus on their outfit. They throw on an emo band crop top and flannel high waisted skirt, as well as vintage pins, fishnets, and a Gilbert Baker pride flag as a cape. Finishing off the look, they dab on a variety of rainbow glitter on all showing skin as well as purple glitter under their eyes. They don’t know why they do this, at this point, it’s like tradition, there is always some kind of makeup covering under their eyes. They guess they thought it was emo when they first did it, but by now they like to think they are more ‘punk’. They shoot Jantendo a message as Remus comes out, followed by Mom, who sports a ‘free mom hugs’ shirt. The three get ready to go, excited for the day ahead.

***

Per Patton’s request, Logan sets out his short-shorts that read ‘ANARCHY’ across the butt. Otherwise, Logan’s outfit is fairly plain, as he knows Patton will have a variety of beads and other accessories collected from decades of Pride protests and celebrations attended by both her and her fathers. Logan makes sure to have a variety of snacks, water bottles, sunscreen packets, and bandaids. Logan grabs his phone and wallet, saying goodbye to his Ren and charting a course to the nice cafe near both Patton and his apartments. 

Patton is already there, sipping on a ridiculously sugary drink that is so vibrant it almost gives Logan a headache. “What the hell is that? Why is it neon pink?”

“Oh, hi Lo!” Patton says cheerily, somehow not jumpy from the half-drunk drink. “It’s a throwback to the unicorn frappe, the pegasus frappe! Want a sip?”

“ _ Definitely _ not,” Logan scrunches his nose. “Do you want to finish that, or drink while we walk?”

“We can get going, where to first?” Patton sips the drink, standing up.

Logan fidgets. “I know that today isn’t about this, but… I have a feeling... and all of the resources I have to say to trust feelings about this… I think I might meet my soulmate soon. The Barrier feels less concrete, can we hang around there after checking out the booths?”

Patton grins, gesturing to give a hug. As soon as Logan nods, she wraps him in a tight squeeze. “I’m so happy for you! We can stay there all day, though the booths are fun, we can stay in the park.”

“Are you sure?” Logan looks at his friend. “I know how much you like seeing local artists.”

“Yes, I’m sure,” Patton says earnestly. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing.”

“Thank you,” Logan smiles. “At least we can watch the parade, right? And if it takes too long, you can go without me.”

“I doubt it’ll come to that, but ok,” Patton nods. “Let’s go!”

The two set out, enjoying seeing the increase of rainbow outfits and signs the closer they get to the Commons. Which reminded Patton to drape the two of them in beads and bracelets and other colorful decorations. Finally, the two settle down at the Soul Barrier, Logan leaning against it as Patton sits beside him, and people-watch. Eventually, Deidre joins them, saying that fae will go and try to meet with faer friend at three, so fae won’t be there for too long.

“Yeah, I’m meeting an online friend that I haven’t met in person,” Deidre says nonchalantly, hiding faer excitement. 

Patton grins. “You should add them to the group chat! A friend of yours is a friend of ours!”

“Well, I don’t know,” Fae grimaces. “They’re a little anxious. I don’t know if it would work.”

“No pressure, that’s ok,” Patton reassures. 

“How did the two of you meet?” Logan changes the subject. “Shit, that sounded romantic, I meant-”

“It’s fine, Lo,” Janus cuts in. “We’ve been friends for years now.”

The three fall back into people-watching, pointing out interesting people.

“Ooo, look at that outfit!” Patton points at a drag queen in a gown. “It’s gorgeous!”

Logan and Janus nod. “I’ll be going to see my friend, see you later?”

“Goodbye,” Logan nods, and Patton waves and fae walk away. “I don’t want to wait here the whole time. Let’s head to the booths.”

“If you’re sure,” Patton brushes the grass off her skirt as Logan nods. “Ok, let’s go!”

***

“Mom, can I split up from you and Remus for a bit?” Virgil asks as Mom spins to look at them. She had been getting a lot of attention from kids who wanted hugs from a mom, sometimes emotional. While Virgil appreciated how caring she is, Virgil didn’t want to be slowed down when meeting Jantendo.

“Is it the friend you wanted to meet?” Virgil nods. “Well, I trust your judgment, but we’re in a new place. Can you stay in the Commons and check your phone regularly?”

“Yes, Mom,” Virgil agrees rapidly, trying to get the conversation done as soon as possible. “You know me, if I was worried about this, you’d be able to tell.”

To be honest, Virgil is a bit nervous. But this is more about first impressions and less about  _ what if he’s a serial killer _ . “I believe you. I know I don’t have to tell you this, but don’t do anything you aren’t comfortable with.”

Virgil agrees but is cut off by a kid close to tears standing at the sideline. “Do you want a Mom hug?” Virgil doesn’t hear the response, they’re already halfway to the statehouse. They scan the crowds, searching for the person from the picture that their friend had sent this morning.

“Hey,” A smooth voice comes from behind them. Virgil spins around.

“Jan!” Virgil immediately recognizes their friend. Virgil sees faer frown. “Or, Dee!”

“Virgil!” Dee nods. “It’s good to meet you at last. Want to watch the parade?”

“Yeah, that sounds cool, we can sit down on the wall and chat while we do,”

“I’d really like that,” Deidre leads Virgil away. “You know, you’re a lot more emo than I thought you’d be.”   
  


“Well,” Virgil retorts, lightly hitting Deidre’s shoulder. “You… look like a Disney villain! You’re wearing a cape that isn’t even a flag!”

“You’re just jealous that I look cooler than you” Deidre brushes faer hair back dramatically with a flick of faer wrist.

“Does that mean I’m-”

“No, don’t.”

“Hotter than you?” Virgil smirks.

“G_d, I hate you.”   
  


“Hate you too, boo,” Virgil blows a kiss. Somebody near the sidewalk is handing out small bags, Virgil can’t see what’s in them. “Hey, up here!” The person looks up, then tosses a bag up. Miraculously, Virgil catches it.

“Oh, it’s lube.” Virgil frowns, peeking in. “I was hoping it was candy.”

Deidre bursts out laughing. “Hardy har har,” Virgil glares, stuffing the bag in their pocket. 

“Seriously though,” Deidre says in between gasps as fae stops laughing. “I have a friend who always has snacks on him, maybe later?”

Virgil nods. “I do have Pop-Tarts, long story,”

“Oh, my hero,” Deidre accepts, taking a bite of a blueberry Pop-Tart. Virgil marvels at how their friendship seems to translate perfectly in person. They know that this doesn’t happen every time online friends meet offline. The two fall into a comfortable silence, simply watching the parade go by. That is, they watch in silence until Virgil feels a few drops of water, first on their face, then their arm.

“I think it’s starting to rain,” Virgil comments. “Can we head inside or something?”

“Yeah sure,” Deidre seems to notice the rain as well. “I know a good cafe near here.”   
  


The two hop off the wall. “I’ll just text my mom, what’s the name?”

By the time Virgil gets the ok, it is pouring, and their phone battery is dangerously low. The two dash across the Commons and by the Soldiers and Sailors statue, not noticing a distraught Logan scanning the crowd. They don’t stop until they reach the cafe, both laughing and out of breath.

***

Logan and Patton take their time heading back, but as soon as they reach the Commons, Logan knows something is up.

“Patton, I think it’s time,” Logan says as calmly as he can, ignoring the starting rain.

“Time? What time- oh,” She gets it, Logan can tell. “You run to the statue, I’ll check the perimeter to see if I can find someone who just now crossed their Soul Barrier. I believe in you, let’s go,”

Logan dashes to the statue, sure that if he sees it, touches it, something will click. He’ll know why here, why now, and he might even find The One. No, he  _ will _ find the one.

As Logan rams into the statue, he spins around. It’s chaos, a mother and young child run in one direction, a young couple sporting a lesbian and bi flag head the other. Out of all the people, an emo boy catches his eye.  _ Teen _ , Logan corrects himself, _ he doesn’t know this person’s gender _ . But, before he can call out, the teen is gone. Logan is about to despair, but he notices a phone on the ground, with just the right placement to have dropped from the emo teen’s pocket. Logan dashes to it. He will reunite this phone with its owner no matter what.

Patton finds him, leaning against the statue, staring at the phone in his hand. She coos sympathetically, passing him a rainbow umbrella. “Anything?”

Logan gestures to the phone. “I hate guessing like this. I hate not being certain.” Logan inhales and exhales before speaking. “But I think this is their phone.”

“Ok, that is a start,” Patton pats his shoulder. “Does it turn on?”

Logan presses the on button on the older iPhone model. Nothing. He then holds it. “The battery is dead. I have a charger, hold on.” Logan goes to rifle through his bag, but Patton grabs his hand.

“Hey, let’s get out of the rain first.” She says softly. The two head to the closest place they can think of, a nearby cafe. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woo, it has been a hot minute since I updated. Ironic that I write this a month after pride. but hey, it's pride! and there is no COVID!
> 
> btw, they aren't in the same cafe. Buuuut... you'll just have to wait and see >:D


	5. Boy Meets Enby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two finally meet after a chance encounter.

Patton had never seen Logan looking so dejected. He stared at that damn phone like it was a lifeline, and in a way, it was. Logan knew that this was the only way he could find his soulmate.

“Lo, penny for your thoughts?”Patton slides a printed drawing of a YouTuber named Penny Parker.

Logan makes a face between a grin and a grimace. “This visual pun is worse than the brown Es. I know that, as soon as this phone starts, I’ll be able to definitively tell if this is my soulmate, but… what if it isn’t? What if I don’t find them?”

A pained smile crosses Patton’s face. “Shit, Pat, I’m so sorry, I must be sounding so insensitive right now-”

“No, honey, it’s ok to be scared.” Patton cuts in softly. “But even if you miss them, which I don’t think you will, you will still be surrounded by friends and family who love you.”

“You’re right. Thanks, Pat, I needed to hear that.” Logan smiles weakly. “I didn’t realize how much this soulmate stuff was weighing on me. The thing is? The statue didn’t help. It didn’t give me any insight or answers. It was just a statue that I never got to go up close to.”

“That’s ok,” Patton says as soothingly as she can muster.

“Excuse me…” A voice pipes up from beside them. A young boy with what appears to be a glitter mustache stands at the table. “Why do you have my Sib’s phone?”

Patton and Logan exchange a look, and before Logan can stumble over an explanation, Patton mercifully cuts in. “We found it outside and wanted to return it to its owner! You recognize the art on the phone case?”   
  


“Yeah!” The boy looks accusatorily at the teens. “My big sib drew it themself! You saying I’m lying?”

“No, of course not,” Logan cuts in. “I just want to return your sib’s phone to them. Do you know where they are?”

“Oh,” The child smiles, any suspicion disappearing from his face. “Well, Mom might, but they’re with a friend from the internet.”

Logan thinks for a moment. How does he bring up to this boy or his mom that he thinks that the owner of this phone is his soulmate?  _ Does _ he bring it up? He flashes Patton a nervous look, and she thankfully understands.

“I’m Patton, and this is Logan. Logan here has been doing a lot of Soulmate searching and thinks that your sib could be his soulmate. Do you think you could bring us to your mom so we can help find them?”

The child gasps before whispering. “I met Virg’s soulmate first.” He grabs Logan’s hand, dragging him across the cafe as Patton follows. “Momomomom! I found Virgie’s soulmate!”   
  


“Remus! I was worried about you!” A kind-looking woman puts down her phone. “Oh! That is so exciting!” The woman turns to Logan as the phone in his hand finally buzzes, turning on to show five missed calls. “That would explain why Virg isn’t answering. I don’t know what to say! It’s lovely to meet you, I’m Sadie.”

“Logan.” Logan shakes her hand before returning ‘Virg’s’ phone. “I’ve been tracking my Soul Spot for a while now, and my research shows that gut feelings should be trusted in these situations. That’s why I grabbed the phone. Also, that’s my friend Patton.”

Patton, who had been standing awkwardly, waves. “Hello, ma’am.”

“Sadie’s fine.” The woman- Sadie- reassures. “I’m sure that we can find Virgil and their friend with the four of us working together.”

***

“No no no!” Virgil cries. “Shit!”

Deidre looks up from the menus sitting in front of them, faer eyebrows pinched in concern.

Virgil groans, slumping onto the table. “Lost my phone.”

Deidre hisses sympathetically. “That’s rough. Need mine to talk with your mom?”

“That would help,” They look up, grinning slightly. “I don’t even know where she is. Oh, get this!”

“What?” Deidre is always a fan of gossip, and though fae doesn’t know Virgil to gossip, their tone sounds like they have a juicy secret.

“So, you know how I called Roman an unbearable drama queen and Remus a chaotic little gremlin-child? And how I said that I’d never been either of their siblings?”

Deidre nods, internally deciding that fae wants an iced latte, but still paying attention to faer friend.

“Well…” Virgil trails. “Roman is still a huge prick, but Remus and I had a bonding moment!”

“Well!” Deidre exclaims. “That’s lovely! But, but, but! Now that you have a little brother, you need to be a  _ terrible _ influence. Teach him how to fight the man and do drugs!”

“My thude.” Virgil snorts. “Neither of us do drugs. But yes, I will make an anarchist out of that boy. He’s already got the foundations, somehow. With his father being, well,  _ him _ , and Roman being the king of sucking up to the cishets…”

“Forget Roman, forget Asshole,” Deidre comforts, resting a hand on Virgil’s shoulder. “Your mom is cool, and so is Remus. Sometimes a family is an emo enby, their awesome mom, a strange child, and their snarky internet friend.”

Janus grins as Virgil cracks up. “You- you did the- meme!” Virgil wheezes. “You’re right, you’re right. Where would I be without you?”

“Probably still with that G_d-awful fringe?” Deidre teases.

“Hey! It wasn’t  _ that _ bad!” Virgil defends, even though they both know that it  _ was _ that bad.

“Ok, if you say so.” Deidre deadpans. “Now, do you have your order? I’ll get it for you while you text your mom.”

Virgil quickly types a text giving their exact address before hitting send. They quickly get a response, but they can’t read the full thing without dropping the phone. Deidre, who had just brought back their drinks, rushes to their side.

“What is it?” Fae asks worriedly.

Virgil doesn’t answer, just slides the phone. Deidre immediately recognizes the names Logan and Patton and the word soulmate.

***

Sadie waits patiently for her child’s response. She doesn’t want to overload the poor kiddo, but she knows she has to tell them. So she gives them a choice, meet them now or meet them later. Logan seems like a gentleman, she’s sure she could convince him to meet up later. To her delight, even though she assures them that this can wait, they say that they are ready to meet Logan.

They are with their friend Dee, the one that they gush about so frequently to her. She’s glad that they have such a close friend. Thankfully, the two of them are close by. She suggests that they come to this coffee shop, to give them the time to go at their own pace. Speaking of pace, poor Logan paces across the floor, seemingly just as nervous as their child must be. 

“They’re on their way now,” Sadie informs Logan.

“Huh?” Logan jerks out of his thoughts. Sadie’s heart aches at the way that Logan’s expression mirrors Virg’s when they’re brought out of a creative brainstorm. She waits patiently for him to process. “Oh, lovely, thank you Mrs. Storm.”

“Logan, you can call me Sadie.” She insists.

“Sorry,” Logan corrects himself. “Thank you, Sadie.”

Sadie looks around. Remus is uncharacteristically quiet, the last time she left him alone for so long without hearing him, he almost set Virgil’s bed on fire. Thankfully, she doesn’t need to look long. Patton, kneeling on the ground to be eye-level with Remus, is showing him some of the stuff in her bag. Currently, she passes a rainbow squishy brain into Remus’ hands, and Sadie smiles at the unbridled joy in her son’s eyes. But, despite the joyful meeting, Sadie can sense a growing impatience in the room, especially emanating from Logan. He reminds her of mentos tossed into a Coke bottle, shaken up as the pressure builds, and threatens to break the seal. Thankfully, before Logan bursts, the door opens and Virgil walks in.

***

Virgil makes eye contact with Mom as soon as they enter the cafe. They don’t know how she can look so calm all the time. She has always been a grounding rock in a churning sea of change. Something in her eyes assures them that, even if they turn around and run, everything will be ok. Ironically, this is what keeps Virgil from turning around and sprinting somewhere far away. Next to Mom is a young man about Virgil’s age. The alleged soulmate, they assume. To his right is Remus, playing with a young woman that Virgil guesses is Dee’s close friend that fae mentioned. Fae nudges them in the side.

“Take your time and all, but Logan is absolute boyfriend material and you should definitely talk to him now.”

Virgil glares at Deidre. “I’m going, I’m going.” They raise their hands and step forward slowly to placate faem. Before Virgil makes it to the party in front of him, Logan looks in his direction.

***

Logan’s brain, as Patton would put it, keysmashes. Does he make eye contact? No, that would just make them more nervous. But does he look away completely? That feels too aloof. Should he introduce himself as they’re walking? He doesn’t want to yell across the cafe. Before Logan can make up his mind, Virgil is in front of him.

“Hello, my name is Logan Berry and I am possibly your soulmate.” Logan manages to stutter before shoving his hand out.  _ No, _ his brain protests,  _ Don’t shake your soulmate’s hand when you first meet! _

  
  


***

_ Oh G_d, _ Virgil feels himself start to grin,  _ he’s as much of a nerd as I am. _ “Virgil.” Virgil grabs his hand and shakes loosely. “Nice to meet you?”

“And you as well,” Logan says automatically, still shaking Virgil’s hand. At this point, Virgil doesn’t know if they should take their hand away.

Virgil laughs softly, retrieving their hand. “This is kinda awkward, but like, good awkward, ya know?”

***

Logan’s stomach flip flops. Virgil’s laugh sounds like music, Logan wants to listen to it on repeat forever. He curses the illogical sentimentality of it all, but if he’s being honest, he thinks that he fell for Virgil before they even met.

Before he knows it, they’re both laughing.

***

Before they can stop themself, Virgil becomes self-conscious of the crowd around the two of them. Everything is bright and noisy. They bring their arms around their chest defensively. “Can we continue this elsewhere?”

Logan looks to Virgil’s- no, Sadie- who nods encouragingly. “Go ahead! Matt wants to grab late lunch in about an hour, so keep in touch and meet us back here?”

Virgil nods, mouthing a ‘thank you’ to their mom. Logan turns to Virgil. “Shall we?”

Virgil smiles and nods. “Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> long time no see
> 
> next chapter, expect pure fluff
> 
> now that we're getting close to the end, I want there to be a sequel to this where Lo and Virg navigate long-distance relationship stuff but I don't think I would be the person to write it. If anyone is interested in continuing the story, let me know? No pressure, I just thought it would be fun to see where this goes with a new set of eyes.


	6. Finale I Guess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all. I've lost steam for this story so I'll just say where I was thinking of taking it so anyone who wants a satisfying conclusion can kind of have it.

  * Virgil and Logan have a nice walk around the Pride parade before they each have to leave  

  * They meet up a few more times before Virgil has to go home
  * The two of them agree to try long-distance
  * Any sequels would follow their attempts at a long distance relationship, eventually ending with them probably moving in together or near each other for college/work/whatever?
  * Patton and Janus could get together
  * Virgil gets closer to Roman and Remus



**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really don't want to write the romantic fluff chapter, sorry

**Author's Note:**

> LoLo's part is shorter, sorry, Virgil has all the action right now.
> 
> I hope you've enjoyed so far! This idea came out of the blue, I read the prompt and got the Logan part only (not including Patton), it's just the rest just came while I was writing. 
> 
> BTW, what I'm going for with the step-dad is that he's not a bad person, there's just something between him and Virg, let me know if that's how it came across
> 
> also, please yell at me if I got any of Virg or Pat's pronouns wrong, it's almost midnight and i'm not going to chekc before posting


End file.
